Inflatable Kayak Blog

For those of us who don’t live in the sun belt, there’s a time of year when kayaking is not an option because of the weather conditions. We call it the “off season”. A customer, who lives in Michigan, recently purchased a PakBoat folding kayak hoping he might have time to get out on the water only to fall victim to an early rush of winter. He asked what to do about the new boat he received and I suggested that he should try to assemble it indoors just to see if all the parts are there and they fit together correctly. A quick inspection of the surface will also turn up any defects. That’s a good idea no matter what type of product you purchase in the “off season” or the “on season”. It’s always disappointing to get your inflatable or folding kayak or portable fishing craft (i.e pontoon or float tube) out to the water and find that you’re missing a small part like a valve cover or wing nut that might keep you out of the water. Check it out ahead of time. Also, especially in the case of a folding kayak or inflatable pontoon, it’s a good idea to practice the assembly so you know what to do when you’re ready to hit the water.

The “off season” is often a good time to buy a kayak because of manufacturer’s discounts, clearance pricing and holiday gift specials. But remember to check out your purchase before you use it. Most of the time everything fits together and all the parts are there. But, if not, you’ll be happy you inspected your purchase instead of standing on the shore wishing you had.

Awhile back I wrote a blog post about the WindPaddle™ sail and how well it works with kayaks, canoes and other small craft. But what really excites me about this sail is how well it functions with my inflatable kayak.

One of the problems that occur when paddling an inflatable kayak is that the wind can affect them quite a bit. I find that I have no trouble paddling into the wind, however a cross wind and, especially, a tail wind seems to want to turn my boat around. That can get very frustrating. We also seem to choose paddling destinations that have more open water, rather than small rivers, which may be less affected by wind. My wife and I have avoided paddling on windy days because it’s just not any fun fighting with that problem. The WindPaddle™ changes that mindset completely. We’ve been able to paddle out into the wind, then when we decide to turn around, we launch the sail. She usually sits in the bow (front) of our inflatable kayak, so she handles the WindPaddle™ steering while I rudder and paddle a little in the (rear) stern to adjust the course. It sure is a lot more fun now and we actually look forward to a windy day so we can use our WindPaddle™ kayak sail.

At PortableKayaks.com, our slogan is “You’re not just another butt in a boat”. Saying that, we try to provide the best customer service we can. Part of that effort is the Product Availability page on our web site. This page lists the items that are currently out of stock or those that are limited in stock due to color or model choices. We also keep the page updated with a list of new products that will be added to our store and the dates those new products will be available. An “update” date is clearly shown at the top of the page so you know how current the information is. Whether it’s an inflatable or folding kayak, portable pontoon or float tube, if there’s an inventory issue, we’ll list it on the Portable Kayaks Product Availability and Inventory page.

Of course, questions are always welcomed. If you need to know more than what’s shown on the page or have more detailed inquiries, feel free to give us a call.

I bought some milk yesterday at a pretty good sale price. There seems to be some heavy competition between the local grocery stores lately, which has resulted in lower prices. I’m sure they won’t last long. But I did remember a couple of other uses for milk that don’t involve drinking it. They both involve outdoor activities, so I thought I’d pass them along on this blog post. Here they are …

1. Thaw frozen fish (especially those you caught from your kayak) in milk to improve the flavor and texture.

2. After cleaning those fish or various other gritty activities, use a mixture of oatmeal and milk to get those grungy hands clean and soft.

We were on vacation in Branson, Missouri recently and although the weather was cold and rainy most of the time, we did have one nice day that we were able to put the kayak in the water and go for a paddle. We decided to paddle in Table Rock Lake, a beautiful 52,300-acre lake with 800 miles of shoreline that was created when the dam was built in 1958. Table Rock State Park has a nice boat launch area where we pumped up the inflatable kayak and carried it a short way down to the lake and started our paddle. For our first paddle we went towards the State Park marina. Talk about some major boats there! On the way we spotted what looked like a deer on one of the hillsides, but it turned out to be a very large dog …too, bad. We always enjoy seeing wildlife.

We had family with us so we kept the trips short, so we could switch paddlers often to give everyone a chance to get in the kayak. Next, we took our nephew Eric out in the boat. This was the first time he had seen an inflatable kayak and wanted to try it out. He did well paddling. I also took my sister Sally out for a paddle. We went out to the small point that was a just a ways down from where we launched. When we got close I could see that the Showboat Branson Belle Paddle Wheeler was docked just beyond the point. It was unusual, but I didn’t have my camera with me. So, after returning with Sally, mu husband and I got in the kayak and went back to get a picture of the Belle. As an added bonus the Branson DUCKS were in the water taking their passengers for a cruise before heading to the hills.

For anyone that hasn’t seen the DUCKS, they aren’t birds, but World War II vehicles used to transport troops through rough terrain and water. Officially called D.U.K.W.s which stood for D = 1942, U = amphibian, K = front wheel drive, and W = rear wheel drive. However American GI’s decided the name DUCK was the perfect fit and that is what they are called today.

It turned out to be a great day for a paddle our inflatable kayak in Table Rock Lake. We would highly recommend you paddle there if you are in the Branson area.

Often, in the process of shopping, there comes a time when I like to jot down the specs of the items I’ve been looking at so I can review them side by side. That way I can make a more educated decision when I finally make my purchase.

If you are shopping for any type of portable watercraft, most of that work is done for you at PortableKayaks.com. We’ve listed all our boats … inflatable kayaks, folding kayaks, inflatable fishing boats, pontoons and float tubes on our Product Comparison page. They are broken down into separate categories and all of the pertinent specs are listed in easy to follow charts. You’ll find the width, length, carrying weight, weight capacity, material specifications, assembly time and other important specs that you can use to make your decision. And every model number is linked to it’s full product page for easy navigation. So if you’ve been searching for a portable fishing craft or folding or inflatable kayak review page, check out the Product Comparison Charts at PortableKayaks.com.

The WindPaddle™. I think it’s a clever name. After all, you’re using the wind to paddle your kayak. Nick Wiltz, who lives in the kiteboarding/sailboarding mecca of Hood River, Oregon, designed this lightweight, circular, portable sail a couple years ago. It’s slowly gained momentum in the paddling marketplace and is now considered to be one of the main choices as a sail for kayaks, canoes and other small crafts. The sails have received good reviews from Practical Sailor Magazine and Playak dot com.

It comes in two sizes, the “Adventure” sail, which uncoils from 15 inches to a 42 inch diameter sail and the “Cruiser” sail, which deploys from 20 inches to a 56 inch diameter sail. Either sail can be set-up for instant self-launching either before sailing or while out on the water. It connects easily to existing boat hardware (perimeter line, bungee cords, eye-straps, etc.) and a continuous sheet (or steering line) allows the paddler to easily control the sail while keeping their paddle in their hands for bracing and steering. There’s also a large window in the center panel of the sail for visibility. The WindPaddle™ design puts the center of force of the sail down low, at about the same level as the paddler, making the boat/sail combination incredibly stable and easy-to-use.

If you’ve ever thought about sailing a kayak, canoe or other small boat, the WindPaddle™ could be just the ticket. It’s an inexpensive and easy way to add the functionality of sailing to almost any craft.

We’re about to depart on a trip to Branson, Missouri and, of course, we’re taking our inflatable kayak. We pretty much take it on every vacation area we drive to. We don’t necessarily plan a vacation for kayaking, but we like to make kayaking one of our activities and the inflatable makes it so easy. I couldn’t imagine having to do the car-top carrier thing just for a couple of kayak paddling jaunts during a week’s vacation. Not to mention the storage space a hard shell kayak would take at home.

Our Sea Eagle 330 Pro inflatable kayak rolls up into a bag about 3 to 4 feet by 18 inches. We also put the kayak seats and our life jackets in the bag and probably would have room for our paddles and pump, however we have another small light suitcase type carrier for them along with a towel, wet shoes and some other things. All in all it takes up less than half the car trunk. I’ve talked to a lot of people who feel the same way about the ease of storage and transportation of inflatable and folding kayaks and I can see why they are a fast growing part of the paddle sports industry.